12. Battery Maintenance Equipment

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12. Battery Maintenance Equipment

With the increasing volume of
batteries in circulation, battery manufacturing is outpacing the
supply of suitable equipment to test these packs. This void is
especially apparent in the mobile phone market where large
quantities of batteries are being replaced under warranty without
checking or attempting to restore them. The dealers are simply not
equipped to handle the influx of returned batteries, neither is the
staff trained to perform this task on a customer service level.
Testing and conditioning these batteries is a complex procedure
that lies outside the capabilities of most customer service
clerks.

With the move to maintenance-free batteries and the need to test
larger numbers of batteries, the function of battery test equipment
is changing. Lengthy cycling is giving way to quick testing,
improved battery preparation and better customer service. This
shift in priority is especially apparent in the rapidly growing
consumer market. In this chapter we examine modern battery
analyzers and how they adapt to the changing needs of battery
service.

12.1 Conditioning Chargers

Charging batteries is often not enough, especially when it comes
to nickel-based chemistries. Periodic maintenance is needed to
optimize battery life. Some innovative manufacturers offer chargers
with conditioning features. The most basic charger models feature
one or several bays with discharge opportunity. More advanced
chargers include a display to reveal the capacity.

Some chargers offer pulse charge methods. This is done to
improve charge efficiency and reduce the memory phenomenon on
nickel-based batteries. Optimal charge performance is achieved by
using a pulse charge that intersperses discharge pulses between
charge pulses. Commonly referred to as ‘burp’ or ‘reverse load’
charge, this charge method promotes high surface area on the
electrodes and helps in the recombination of the gases generated
during charge.

Some manufacturers claim that the pulse charge method conditions
and restores NiCd batteries and makes the periodic discharges
redundant. Research carried out by the US Army has revealed that
pulse charging does reduce the crystalline formation on the NiCd
battery. If properly administered, batteries charged with these
pulse chargers prolong service life. For batteries with advanced
memory, however, the pulse charge method alone is not
sufficient and a full discharge or recondition cycle is needed to
break down the more stubborn crystalline formation.